The College of New Jersey Department of Music and the Center for the Arts presented soprano Robin Johannsen on Saturday, November 2, 2013 in Mayo Concert Hall. This event was Johannsen’s United States premiere solo recital. The program consisted of works by Handel, Mahler, Schubert, Ravel, Bernstein, and Mozart, in collaboration with the Department of Music faculty Tomoko Kanamaru as well as the Dean of the School of Arts and Communication, John C. Laughton. To see clips of the performance, please visit the links below.
Leonard Bernstein (1918–1990) “Silhouette”
Gustav Mahler (1860–1911) “Ablösung im Sommer”
Franz Schubert (1797-1828) “Heidenröslein”
Since her debut with the Deutsche Oper Berlin in 2002, Johannsen has been sought after by the most prestigious opera houses, symphony halls and music festivals throughout Europe. In recent years, she has also made several appearances in the USA, performing with the Pittsburgh, Dallas, and Baltimore Symphony Orchestras as well as with the Oregon Bach Festival under such celebrated conductors as Helmuth Rilling, Marin Alsop, Robert Page, and Jeffrey Kahane.
Tomoko Kanamaru, piano: Described by The Philadelphia Inquirer as a “charismatic pianist,” Ms. Kanamaru has appeared with the Savannah, Toledo, Middletown (Ohio), and Annapolis Symphonies, the Binghamton Philharmonic, and Symphony of Southeast Texas. Ms. Kanamaru recently performed for New York Philharmonic Ensembles and New York Chamber Music Festival, in which she was reviewed favorably in the New York Times by Allan Kozinn. Ms. Kanamaru has recorded for the Nippon Columbia and the MSR Classics labels, and has had numerous publications from the Yamaha Music Foundation, RM Williams Publishing, and Balquhidder Music. She has given master classes/lectures at Indiana State, Syracuse, and Carnegie Mellon Universities. Her workshop at the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy was featured in the Washington Post and the BBC’s The World Today for worldwide broadcast.